Federal Register / Vol. 72, No. 37 / Monday, February 26, 2007 / Proposed Rules 8335 

same level. A closure should not 

significantly affect their operations as 

they are capable of fishing in other areas 

that would remain open, outside the 

boundaries of the Convention Area. In 

2005, 500 mt of bigeye tuna were caught 

by the U.S. longline fishery in the 

Convention Area. In 2007, if the U.S. 

longline fishery reaches the 500 metric 

ton limit, this fishery is capable of 

fishing in other areas that would remain 

open. 

NMFS is not aware of any relevant 

Federal rules that duplicate, overlap, or 

conflict with this proposed rule. This 

rule does not impose reporting or 

recordkeeping requirements, and the 

compliance requirements for the closure 

areas are as described at the outset of 

this summary. 

NMFS considered three alternatives 

for this proposed rule: The 2006 IATTC 

Tuna Conservation Resolution allows 

nations to opt for a 6–week summer 

closure of the purse seine fishery from 

August 1 through September 20 of 2007 

or a closure from November 20 through 

December 31, 2007. The August 1 

September 20 closure alternative may 

have a greater economic impact on 

small entities than the November 20 

December 31 closure. In particular, the 

U.S. purse seine fleet may prefer a 

closure later in the fishing year because 

the winter weather is not conducive to 

fishing. Also, throughout the history of 

this fishery shipyards have been 

prepared to accept vessels for scheduled 

repairs during the winter months. The 

fishery closure later in the year allows 

the industry to plan for and mitigate 

economic impacts of a closure while 

still providing the conservation benefits 

to the tuna resources in the ETP. 

NMFS also considered the alternative 

of not implementing the 2006 IATTC 

Tuna Conservation Resolution. This 

alternative would have imposed no 

economic costs on small entities. 

However, failure to implement measures 

that have been agreed on pursuant to the 

Convention would violate the United 

States’ obligations under the 

Convention, and would violate the Tuna 

Conventions Act. 

Authority: 16 U.S.C. 951–961 and 971 et 

seq. 

Dated: February 21, 2007. 

Samuel D. Rauch III, 

Deputy Assistant Administrator for 

Regulatory Programs, National Marine 

Fisheries Service. 

[FR Doc. E7–3251 Filed 2–23–07; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 3510–22–S 

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE 

National Oceanic and Atmospheric 

Administration 

50 CFR Part 622 

[I.D. 021607G] 

Gulf of Mexico Fishery Management 

Council; Public Meetings 

AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries 

Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and 

Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), 

Commerce. 

ACTION: Notice of public meeting. 

SUMMARY: The Gulf of Mexico Fishery 

Management Council (Council) will 

convene the Law Enforcement Advisory 

Panel (LEAP) to review a revised Draft 

Joint Amendment 27 to the Reef Fish 

Fishery Management Plan (FMP)/ 

Amendment 14 to the Shrimp FMP. 

This amendment contains alternatives 

to regulate the harvest and bycatch of 

red snapper by both the directed 

commercial and recreational fisheries 

and the shrimp fishery in the Gulf of 

Mexico. The need for this amendment 

arose from the Southeast Data, 

Assessment and Review (SEDAR) 

process through which a recent stock 

assessment showed that the red snapper 

stock in the Gulf was overfished and 

overfishing was continuing. 

DATES: The meeting will be held on 

Tuesday, March 13, 2007 from 1 p.m. to 

5 p.m. 

ADDRESSES: The meeting will be held at 

the Beau Rivage Resort and Casino, 875 

Beach Boulevard, Biloxi, Mississippi, 

888–383–7037. 

Council address: Gulf of Mexico 

Fishery Management Council, 2203 

North Lois Avenue, Suite 1100, Tampa, 

Florida 33607. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Dr. 

Richard Leard, Deputy Executive 

Director, Gulf of Mexico Fishery 

Management Council; telephone: 813–

348–1630. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The LEAP 

will review a scoping document for a 

potential amendment to address the 

need for additional management 

measures for gray triggerfish, greater 

amberjack, gag, and red grouper. The 

LEAP will discuss enforcement 

implications of the potential 

implementation of a fish-tagging 

program for stocks managed under 

individual fishing quotas (IFQs) such as 

red snapper and the potential use of a 

Federal fish stamp to identify 

recreational fishermen fishing in the 

exclusive economic zone (EEZ). Finally, 

the LEAP will discuss any enforcement 

problems and successes of the recently 

implemented IFQ program for red 

snapper and review the status of various 

FMP amendments and other regulatory 

actions previously approved by the 

Council. 

The LEAP consists of principal law 

enforcement officers in each of the Gulf 

States, as well as the NMFS, U.S. Fish 

and Wildlife Service (FWS), the U.S. 

Coast Guard, and the National Oceanic 

and Atmospheric Administration’s 

(NOAA) General Counsel. A copy of the 

agenda and related materials can be 

obtained by calling the Council office at 

813–348–1630. 

Although other non-emergency issues 

not on the agendas may come before the 

LEAP for discussion, in accordance with 

the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery 

Conservation and Management Act (MSFCMA), those issues may not be the 

subject of formal action during this 

meeting. Actions of the LEAP will be 

restricted to those issues specifically 

identified in the agendas and any issues 

arising after publication of this notice 

that require emergency action under 

Section 305(c) of the M-SFCMA, 

provided the public has been notified of 

the Council’s intent to take action to 

address the emergency. 

These meetings are physically 

accessible to people with disabilities. 

Requests for sign language 

interpretation or other auxiliary aids 

should be directed to Tina Trezza at the 

Council (see ADDRESSES) five working 

days prior to the meeting. 

Dated: February 20, 2007. 

James P. Burgess, 

Acting Director, Office of Sustainable 

Fisheries, National Marine Fisheries Service. 

[FR Doc. E7–3244 Filed 2–23–07; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 3510–22–S 

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE 

National Oceanic and Atmospheric 

Administration 

50 CFR Part 660 

[I.D. 012607A] 

RIN 0648–AU26 

Fisheries Off West Coast States; 

Coastal Pelagic Species Fishery; 

Amendment 12 to the Coastal Pelagic 

Species Fishery Management Plan 

AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries 

Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and 

Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), 

Commerce. 


hsrobinson on PROD1PC76 with PROPOSALS